Economics Chapter Overview

Chapter 11: The Economy and Work

• Chapter outline includes: World Economic Systems, The Nature of Work, Resistance Strategies, The Conscience of Corporate America, The Economics of Globalization, and Different Ways of Working.
• Understanding the economy and work is vital because it directly affects people's lives (from micro to macro).
• Economies involve production, distribution, and consumption.
• Work connects individuals to society.
• Changes in history, technology, and the economy affect jobs and daily life.

11.1 World Economic Systems

• Differentiate among communism, socialism, and capitalism.

Why Study the Economy and Work?

• Economies are more than just money; they involve production, distribution, and consumption.
• Work is a key link between individuals and society.
• Economic shifts impact personal lives and the job market.

Capitalism

• Capitalism is an economic system built on free market competition, private ownership of production (means of production), and profit-seeking motives.
• It promotes efficiency, new technologies, market expansion but it can also increase social inequalities.
• Capitalistic ideologies include the free market, private property, and profit-seeking, which influence institutions like education and healthcare.

Socialism and Communism

• Socialism prioritizes collective ownership of production, services, and government regulation.
• Communism, the most extreme form of socialism, eliminates private property, collectivizes resources, and aims for a classless society.
• In socialist economies, basic necessities are considered entitlements.

The U.S. Economy

• The U.S. is predominantly capitalist, yet government agencies like the Federal Reserve Board play a regulatory role in the market.
• Education and health care in the U.S. show a mix of public and private ownership.
• Systems typically have features of multiple economic systems.

11.2 The Nature of Work

• Summarize the transformations wrought by the agricultural, industrial, and information revolutions on job types and work patterns.

Early Economies in North America

• Pre-16th-century Native American societies form the earliest known economies in North America.
• Mobile hunting and gathering societies prioritized survival.
• Horticultural societies focused on farming and animal domestication for surplus resources.

Agricultural Revolution and Agricultural Work Today

• The agricultural revolution dramatically altered societies via population increases and farming technological advancements.
• Agriculture today involves more than just farming; "agribusiness" encompasses farm labor, equipment development, food processing, and sales.

The Industrial Revolution

• The industrial revolution saw rapid social shifts driven by technologies like steam power, assembly lines, and urbanization.
• Before the revolution, production was primarily household- or craft-based.
• The factory system introduced wage labor, leading to mass urbanization.

Alienation

• Industrialization led to workforce stratification by class, race, and gender.
• Alienation describes the worker's dissatisfaction with their work, often due to producing goods controlled by others.

The Information Revolution

• The Information Revolution, starting in the 1970s, brought massive advances in information management via microchips.
• The U.S. economy shifted from goods-based production to knowledge- and service-based production.

Postindustrial Work Today

• Postindustrial economies feature service work, often requiring direct interaction with clients or customers.
• Knowledge work, encompassing information-based tasks, is another prominent sector.
• Manufacturing and agriculture are declining as automation and offshoring take hold.

Service Work

• Service work involves providing services, unlike manufacturing goods.
• Many service jobs suffer from instability, low pay, and lack of benefits.
• Essential service workers faced increased risk during the pandemic.

Knowledge Work

• Knowledge work focuses on producing ideas, analyses, and innovations to drive the economy forward.
• Examples include advertising, engineering, and product development.
• Technology has increased productivity but also increased work hours.
• Telecommuting became a common practice, connecting workers to workplaces through technology.

Time for a Vacation?

• Data shows varying vacation time and paid holidays among countries, highlighting differences in labor policies and practices.

On the Job: Internships

• Internships provide valuable job experience to students.
• However, concerns exist about potential overwork and underpayment, particularly for minority and female students.
• Unpaid internships can be financially challenging for students who need to earn money.

11.3 Resistance Strategies: How Workers Cope

• Workers employ various strategies to address job dissatisfaction, control workplace conditions, and secure better treatment.

How Workers Cope

• Resistance strategies include individual action (e.g., personalizing workspace) and collective action (e.g., unionization, strikes).
• Worker resistance shapes the modern workplace by influencing policies such as child labor laws and the five-day workweek.

Individual Resistance: Handling Bureaucracy

• Workers in bureaucratic settings frequently lack autonomy and face surveillance.
• "Quiet quitting" emerged as a response to inadequate working conditions in recent times.

Collective Resistance: Unions

• Workers often organize to collectively address working conditions, wages, and benefits.
• Unionization efforts have grown during the pandemic.

In Relationships: The Value of Break Time

• Breaks are more than just time off; they're crucial for social interaction and increased productivity.
• Breaks allow workers to reclaim their identities within the workplace.

11.4 The Conscience of Corporate America

• Investigate examples of positive contributions made by American corporations.

Corporate Conscience

• Corporate malfeasance has a long history but some recent efforts in corporate social responsibility (CSR) aim to address this.

In the Future: Will Your Job Be "Uberized"?

• The "gig economy" features freelance work but lacks stability and benefits for workers.
• Gig work undermines conventional low-wage job markets and makes it harder for individuals to get stable paychecks

11.5 The Economics of Globalization

• Define globalization and key features of today's global economy, including international trade, transnational corporations, sweatshop labor, and outsourcing.

The Economics of Globalization

• Globalization reflects interconnected cultural and economic shifts triggered by increased global trade.
• The world is increasingly viewed as a single economic entity.

International Trade

• Economic globalization is described using terms like shallow and deep integration.
• Shallow integration involves straightforward import/export arrangements.
• Deep integration involves more complex global flows of goods and services.

Transnational Corporations

• Transnational corporations (TNCs) operate internationally, manufacturing, distributing, and selling products across borders.
• They hold significant economic influence and can impact local populations.
• TNCs frequently take advantage of low labor costs through outsourcing.

Global Sweatshop Labor

• Companies seek to minimize costs by outsourcing or using sweatshops.
• Sweatshops involve severe exploitation of workers with poor wages, long hours, and hazardous work conditions.
• This problematic practice affects numerous industries, including clothing manufacturing.

Outsourcing

• Companies outsource work to other countries, usually for reduced costs.
• This impacts employment in the original country and can harm/exploit workers in the outsourced country.
• Outsourcing affects several industries, not just manufacturing, including clerical, information tech, finance, and some medical professions.

Global Perspective: Covid, PPE, and the Global Supply Chain

• The pandemic exposed supply chain vulnerabilities and global dependencies, affecting global markets.

11.6 Different Ways of Working

• Explore alternative work arrangements.

Professional Socialization in Unusual Fields

• Professional socialization encompasses the process where new workers adapt to organizational norms and job requirements.
• Funeral directors undergo socialization through specialized training.

The Contingent and Alternative Workforce

• Describes a workforce with temporary, freelance, or contract arrangements.
• This is increasing in today's economy with workers in various types of diverse and specialized jobs.

The Third Sector and Volunteerism

• The Third Sector comprises nonprofit organizations, often relying on volunteer labor, alongside government and business.
• These organizations fill crucial community needs.

Discussion Question 2

• Reflect on personal resistance strategies in the workplace.

Discussion Question 3

• Discuss corporate social responsibility and malfeasance examples.

Discussion Question 4

• Evaluate the US economy, examining aspects of centrally funded services vs. privately owned ones.